Vu Car Care

I’ve been going to vus since I was 16. My uncle originally referred me. I’ve brought vehicles in at least a dozen times and referred them twice that. Prices are great, service is above average and speed is usually but not always great. I trust this mechanic a lot. They are honest guys doing a very good job. Thanks for taking such good care of me!

Okay where do i begin with this car repair shop? First of all, i’ve been a customer since 2009, and since then i’ve never been disappointed in them. They’re the best kept secret of Portland because they’re cheap in cost repairs and car parts, and most importantly they’re very honest with their repairs and other car maintenance they might find. Before that, I was with Firestone Auto Care when i first got my car in 2004, and yet every time i go into for any maintenance, there were always these additional maintenances they found and in need of repairs. At times i wonder if Firestone was telling the truth o just throwing out fake maintenances to keep the money rolling into their business establishment. Especially basic oil changes, they’d charge me high prices «high mileage» oils instead of the usual 5W-​30SAE motor oil my car requires. Finally, I’ve had enough, and decided to end my business with Firestone and their constant frauds of endless car problems that seems to always pop up every time i visit. A friend of mine told me about Vu Car Care and was distrustful at first but I figured let me give them a chance at it and see how it goes. For my oil change, it was cheap, and they basically told me my car has very high mileage, to just use any cheap 10W-​30 motor oil which works just as well for my car with high mileages, so I’ve been changing oil with them since then, and again, it’s cheap compared to Firestones oil change prices. In Aug. 2010, I took my car to WA state DMV to get evaluated for my annual tag renewals, they’d found a couple of problems with my car that needed to be fixed. I got the official document printed out with the listed problems, immediately took it to Vu’s he took care of the problems right there and it didn’t cost much as i compared the prices around each car repair shop. The next day I want to WA state DMV to get re-​evaluated and I PASSED! Along the years, my car has been doing fine, then I’d find problems that’d pop up here and there, and i’m off to Vu’s. They took care of each problems, I asked them if they found any additional problems with my car as a necessary preventative maintenance, and they said overall my car is good.
I’ve held this secret for years so that in hopes that Vu Car Care isn’t as inundated with customers and that I can get my car in without having to wait for days until it’s ready, because they’re the only car repair shop in Portland with cheap repair prices and INTEGRITY OMG. But that would be selfish of me, and I can no longer holdout on them, because then I’d feel I’m doing them a disfavor of not spreading good news about their outstanding business. It’s now December 2014, i just got back from a 6-​months military overseas deployment and found my alternator had died after 10 years. And of course, I went to Vu’s and got it changed out for a fair price. After that alternator change, that’s when i fought with my conscious and decided to give credit where credit is due, and write this review about them. From the bottom of my heart, thank you very much Vu Car Care, I’ve been with you guys for 5 years and will continue on until we all grow old together :)

after 5 years of trusting Vu’s I was not only treated badly by the man who says he was the owner (and I guess I was assisted all the times before by his nephews) but I was actually accused of something that simply wasn’t true. I need my mechanic to be in my corner and help explain things to me, not alienate and abandon me. I tried to talk this over with him, and explain that I valued their service and opinion but he said he was sure I was going to try to sue him (which was completely unwarranted). So after exchanging thousands of dollars for work over the last 5 years and recommending them to family and friends, I have been alienated and abandoned. I also know in my heart of hearts that if I were a man, I would never have been treated this way. It really sucks, and I do believe the nephews there are more sincere and earnest but I could never go back there again. Everyone loses from some ego-​based behavior on the part of some mostly absentee owner.

I have been going here for over a decade and have not had one bad experience. For that I thank you and give you five stars. Vu Car Care Rules. They are honest, Hands down a rarity when it comes to mechanics. Props!

I brought my car to Vu a few months ago to replace the coolant recovery bottle in the cooling system because there was a leak. He replaced the bottle but not the hoses, saying that they were OK. However, the car has over 175,000 miles on it, so the hoses should have been replaced.
I kept noticing coolant leaks on the floor of my garage so I brought it back. First he said that there was no leak. Then he found a leaking hose. Rather than replace the entire hose ($ 45 part), he only replaced part of it and charged me $ 12.50 for the part, but $ 90 for labor! I would have gladly paid a few extra dollars for the piece of mind that would come with the installation of a new part.
Also, if they had only done what most good shops would do and replaced the hoses, I would not have had to bring it back and essentially pay double for labor (coolant bottle & hose repair). It could all have been done at the same time when they replaced the bottle. Now, I still have old hoses (and the summer is here) so I will have to watch like a hawk for any future leaks.
I was also initially charged more than I was quoted for the coolant bottle because they said that it cost them time to drive me a few blocks away to where I waited for the repair. Of course they did not discuss this extra charge before hand (and most good shops would not charge extra anyway). In addition, they wanted to charge me hundreds more to fix an inconsistency in the heating and cooling system which resolved itself when I replaced the coolant bottle. Apparently, there must have been an air bubble in the system.
I will look for another place to go as I am very disappointed by their service.

Don’t do it! Glad to hear some of you had a good experience, but be careful! I am writing this review right now after being told by another reputable mechanic that the catalytic converter that Vu put in my Jetta was second hand, in terrible shape and the work was shoddy! I have to spend another $ 1,200 to replace the converter. My emissions light went on only 4 months after a $ 1,600 repair bill at Vu’s. He also put the O2 sensors in the wrong place! Seriously, do your homework before taking your car here and make sure he is using NEW parts. This is my first review on Unilocal ever so I am not just a complainer. I had to write this to make sure someone else didn’t end up in the same expensive situation as I did.

Everyone at the shop was very friendly, helpful and professional. I was as pleased with the cost as I was with the service. These guys are top notch. I would take my car there again.

I have been bringing my cars here for years. I live in Vancouver, WA and yet if I have to take my vehicle somewhere and I can drive it there, they are my first choice. The best prices around. I actually feel like I can trust these guys.

I’ve been coming here for the past two years and couldn’t be happier. The service is excellent and honest. There have been times when the check engine light has been on in my car, and they told me that the issue didn’t need to be fixed (even though they certainly could have told me I needed to, and I wouldn’t know the difference). They’ve fixed small issues for me at no charge. They have given me rides home when my car needed to stay with them for a while. The prices are great. I can’t stress enough how wonderful they are!

Fast, trustworthy and affordable! As soon as they looked at my rotors, they knew what the problem was, and fixed it promptly. Based on what he told me about the problem, I knew he was legitimate. Brakes have been awesome and it was worth the price!

The service here is excellent. It’s a family-​operated automotive shop by Long (the owner) and Ly (Long’s brother). While your car is in the shop getting fixed, they will lend you a loaner. They go out of their way for their customers such as picking your car at your house and dropping your car at your house when done. This shop is located in a friendly neighborhood. A lot of neighbors stops by to chit-​chat with the workers. During lunch and dinner, the neighbors are always welcome to join them. You are not treated as another customer but you are treated as family. I always get my BMW tune-​ups and oil change here because it doesn’t cost a fortune like Kuni.